Private Sector Jobs on LI Increased Over the Year

More than 11,000 private sector jobs were created on Long Island compared to a year ago, but job growth in Nassau and Suffolk counties still came in lower than the state and the nation, the New York State Department of Labor said Thursday.

In total, 11,200 new jobs were added compared to last October, a 1.1 percent gain over the year, the labor department said. New York State’s private sector growth rate compared to a year ago was 1.8 percent and the nations came in at 1.7 percent.

Despite falling short of state and national numbers, there were some positive signs of job growth on Long Island.

Six of nine sectors got a boost in October, including education and health services, leisure and hospitality, according to the labor department’s latest employment data.

In its report, the labor department said professional and business services approached record levels. The financial activities sector grew by 4,400 compared to October 2011, but is still more than 7,000 jobs from its average before the recession hit.

The construction sector continued its fall since the recession, according to the report. The natural resources, mining and construction sector lost 5,600 jobs compared to last year. Manufacturing also continued to decline as it currently employs half the number people it did more than 20 years ago.

Long Island surpassed its typical September to October gains by more than 5,000 jobs, which may be attributed to retailers hiring seasonal employees earlier than expected.

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